December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

Re: Bill Gates, the Bully Savior
by Declan McCullagh 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

There was a good op-ed in the WSJ on Monday. The Politics of Envy, basically. Why everyone in Silicon Valley hates Microsoft... But some of the complaints about Microsoft come down to personal taste. The masses offend refined sensibilities when they buy Windows 95 in droves. Rein them in! Stop them from buying what they want! Don't let them get free copies of Internet Explorer. I share Lizard's distaste for Microsoft products. My Unix workstation at home has not one MSFT application on it. I have only Microsoft Word on my Duo at work, and I could get by with WordPerfect. But our dislike for their products doesn't mean that we are morally justified in restricting what the company can do. -Declan At 10:42 -0700 10/22/97, Lizard wrote: >Uhm...how do 'we all' benefit from having the same Justice Department which >defended the CDA (and which is pushing for GAK) decide for us all what is, >and is not, part of an operating system? > >These people are not qualified to make ANY judgements about computers -- I >have to assume the 'experts' they got to tell them about OS software are no >more qualified than the 'experts' they got to testify about the CDA (L-18, >anyone?). > >I have no great love for Microsoft (I don't think anyone forced to use >their crappy software does), and, emotionally, I'd like to see them get >taken down a peg -- but legally and ethically, they are not doing anything >wrong. They're just being tough competitors. Microsoft has prospered not >due to any technical brilliance on their part, but due to sheer >incompetance on the part of the rest of the industry, who have made a hobby >of underestimating Bill Gates and overestimating their own customers loyalty. > >It's a pity I'm a mind-flaying victim. If I wasn't, I could forget >principles and ideals and just say, "Microsoft Big. Microsoft Nasty. Uncle >Sam stomp Microsoft. Yay, Uncle Sam." But because I work from principle >FIRST, I have to grant Microsoft the same rights I would grant Sam's Deli >or Joe's Shoe Store, and that includes the right to offer any combination >of products or services they wish, and let the market decide to buy or not. ------------------------- Declan McCullagh Time Inc. The Netly News Network Washington Correspondent http://netlynews.com/

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Re: PGP, Inc.--What were they thinking?
by spencer_ante＠webmagazine.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Declan, perhaps the Big Brother vs. The Boss debate has been talked about for years in the crypto community but, as far as I can tell, it hasn't crossed over into the mainstream mediasphere. And that's partly due to the rhetoric of cyberlibertarians, who have consistently pointed their finger (justifiably most of the time) at the evil government, at the expense of seriously analyzing surveillance in the private sector. For example, how many people know what their company's security policy is? Do they read your email? How often and with what cause? I think any type of surveillance system is cause for concern--whether it originates from the government or IBM. Lastly, I think you overestimate the amount of wiggle room folks have in the labor market, which is never perfect. What happens when most of the Fortune 500 starts eavesdropping on company email? (Incidentally, I think that most working people--unlike the digerati--are not in a position to launch their own company.) It reminds me of the drug testing issue. Sure, it sucks and may even be unconstitutional, but that hasn't stopped a lot of companies from doing it. -Spencer (posting this from my the computer in my corporate cubicle) At 15:08 -0700 10/22/97, spencer_ante(a)webmagazine.com wrote: >But with this new product, I agree that they run the risk of alienating >their core user group of cypherpunks and hackers. Encryption is a very >complicated topic that doesn't lend itself well to sloganeering and >histrionics. And one major thing that needs to be pointed out: PGP's key >recovery system is *voluntary and private*--not mandatory and gov. >controlled, which is what the Feds and Louis Freeh have been pushing for. >One potential positive side effect of PGP 5.5 is that it could realign the >crypto debate and force people to consider this question: Whose back door >should netizens be more worried about: Big Brother or The Boss? Spencer, the folks on the cypherpunks list know better than perhaps anyone else that encryption is a complicated topic. I know it's tempting to search for New Things to Say about the crypto debate. I try it myself sometimes. But the question you posed about "whose backdoor should netizens be more worried about" has been debated for years and is hardly new. The short answer to it is: when Big Brother is my Boss, I have remedies. I can leave the company or pressure it to change policies. I can file a union grievance. If all else fails, I can leave the company and start my own. This is not the case when Big Brother is Louis Freeh or Janet Reno. When worldwide GAK is the rule, where else can I go? Also: governments have guns; governments have jails. They have unique coercive powers, which the law and western philosophical traditions recognize -- and try to limit. -Declan (posting this before a soccer game somewhere in virginia)

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PGP 5.5 and the corporate environment
by Roger J Jones 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Just a small aside. Our help desk handles about 50 to 75 "I forgot my password" requests per day. This might be one small motivating factor why corporations desire an alternative method to recover encrypted files.

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Unlocking crypto-secrets Wired article -- request for help
by Declan McCullagh 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I'm working on a Netizen article for Wired Magazine on secret crypto-briefings and thought I'd ask the list for help. You know the briefings I'm talking about -- classified sessions where the FBI director, the Commerce Dept, NSA, and occasionally anti-drug officials pressure Congressmen to place restrictions on encryption. Sometimes it works, and our elected representatives vote to put strict limits on encryption technologies. (The secret briefings certainly seemed to work on the House Commerce committee.) I'd like to unlock those closed doors. If anyone has insights into what happens during these sessions, I'd be very interested in learning more. Pointers to open sources would be great. I will keep your identity confidential. I'd also be interested in learning more about the secret briefing practices of other countries. Please feel free to recirculate this message. I've attached my PGP key below. Please use it sparingly; I keep my private key on a non-networked machine and it's laborious to move data back and forth. If you want to send a tip through an anonymous remailer, a web-based one is at: http://www.replay.com/remailer/anon_no_ssl.html Thanks, Declan ****************** http://www.well.com/user/declan/.pgpkey PGP Key fingerprint = F4 0A 36 1F 7F B1 4B CB 5C 38 2C 13 FE 1E 4D 80 -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Version: 2.6.2 mQCNAzF5mVcAAAEEALKyL4tjF7t4h+hmbY+q0b0FdSZy3dx8LuUwkTmAY6Ib/YX7 WhZR22+T1Tts/JaC7iAhr/zfxI9IrHqT1C7NV/aqdEVAuI+pjYKpcRKOU7i0ccAx db/jddUvzX4bjqKQQLLcOihcle6BD2+7vEXxaaMOA5nTU5i/Sn7vt7V2BpKxAAUT tCJEZWNsYW4gTWNDdWxsYWdoIDxkZWNsYW5Ad2VsbC5jb20+iQCVAwUQMXmajn7v t7V2BpKxAQG6NAP/RUEBrnFfR6vbIdoAeyt2jXsuPPcH944mnyp4fNLH3OEzQlj6 tXee9eYaqazUgkLNCyWXDDGQJxsok58hqIEOHoTgilAcomMW3mIoqN7uMIevyvmo NH170+a6drNwY4kNXNUsDDx6qfgQz5wTxaVyxbZuyslX1k3kDID8vPSyxbs= =dofB -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- ******************

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Re: Bill Gates, the Bully Savior
by Paul Spirito 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 01:34 PM 10/22/97 -0700, Declan McCullagh wrote: >Or it's like buying a Ford Mustang that comes with brown carpets. Auto >manufacturers "bundle" lots of things with their cars... Where's the DoJ >when we need them?!? Not sure where I stand on this. An OS is more like a highway than a car. Or, better, a rail track -- since it imposes severe compatibility requirements on those who want to utilize it. Imagine that someone owned the rail track standard & had the exclusive IP-rights to manufacture it. Non-standard tracks exist, but they don't go nearly as many places. Then the company uses its position as owner of the tracks to demand... Oh screw it. I don't feel like going down analogy road any further. Detail is the enemy of ideology, & the significant detail re: Microsoft is the rare & happy (for Bill Gates) character of its business that it is more important to have a standard OS than to have a quality OS. Therein lies his billions, & it seems to me reasonable to scrutinize attempts to parlay that counter-ordinary-market reality into dominance in other areas. Perhaps this could be settled as the online service spat was: bundle Netscape with Win98 (& Opera, Arachne &c). Or perhaps the US could nationalize Windows. Whoo-hoo! Therein lies a Plan... Paul Her name was Julie, she wore Batman sneakers, And she laughed when she sang, "Money can't buy me love!" North of Petaluma where the 1 meets the 101 -- Oh man, we took a lot of drugs...

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Laws recognizing digital signatures
by Vincent Cate 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I have talked to people in government and the offshore private sector here and think Anguilla has a very good chance of passing a law making digital signatures legally recognized, at least for corporations. I think we would be the first taxhaven to do so. Currently companies use corporate seals. I mentioned that there were a few other jurisdictions that had passed some laws like this and they would like me to try to pin down which and, if possible, get copies of the laws. I remember some talk about this on cypherpunks, so I am hoping someone here can tell me which places (think there was some state) have such laws, and if possible tell me where I can get a copy. Thanks, -- Vince ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Vincent Cate Offshore Information Services Vince(a)Offshore.com.ai http://www.offshore.com.ai/ Anguilla, BWI http://www.offshore.com.ai/vince ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Re: PGP, Inc.--What were they thinking?
by Anonymous 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

>Agreed. What amazes me is how PGP, Inc. would decide this should be a core >part of their company. "PGP for Business," indeed. What were they thinking? Um, maybe that they wanted to stay in business?

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Federal Key Recovery Demonstration Project ?!
by Robert Hettinga 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

--- begin forwarded text Date: 20 Oct 1997 14:29:39 -0400 From: Mark Atwood <zot(a)ampersand.com> (by way of rah(a)shipwright.com (rah-news)) To: rah(a)shipwright.com Subject: Federal Key Recovery Demonstration Project ?! Mime-Version: 1.0 Path: thing1.leftbank.com!thing2.leftbank.com!cam-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-hu b1.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-feed5.bbnplanet.com!news.bbnplanet.com!ftp.ampersand.c om!not-for-mail Newsgroups: talk.politics.crypto Organization: Ampersand, Inc. Lines: 62 NNTP-Posting-Host: colon.ampersand.com X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.2.40/Emacs 19.31 Xref: thing1.leftbank.com talk.politics.crypto:23766 X-Newsreader: Yet Another NewsWatcher 2.3.0 -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Just saw the fallowing ad on pg 42 of Federal Computer Week, Vol 11, Num 33, Oct 20, 1997. If I was closer, I would go, just to see what the "enemy" has to demonstrate. ================================================== The Government Information Technology Services Board Federal Key Recovery Demonstration Project invites you to attend A TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE Wednesday, November 15, 1997, Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington DC 7.30 a. m. - 8: 00 a. m. Conference with exhibit demonstrations following from 8:00 a.m. - 5:30p.m. For details, visit out Web site: http://gits-sec.treas.gov or contact Lisa McGrady Pellegrin at (202) 293-3835 or Terry Painter at (202) 986-0200 Registration fee: $100.00 (includes breakfast, lunch) To register, please call and mail check by October 24, 1997 payable to: McPell Communications Company 1140 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Suit 606, Washington, D.C. 20036 ================================================== -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.3ia Charset: noconv Comment: Processed by Mailcrypt 3.4, an Emacs/PGP interface iQCVAwUBNEui9jecHWvdAD3dAQF2uAP+OJMD/t7wFl1YiHqS+P/Dor0D5lDXOk6S 0b4fkVqeBih/gRwM0UYOxqlpxh7uyHjXyQQIsaLRUtMD3f+Rg3vPkBHubGwPq513 98upODawMD5znT/xUT5TZHeWWxlnisBrmcH308jG1zLYh4Ls1qJat75n2ldj+HWI RhdMsNvIn/Y= =VJyz -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- Mark Atwood | Thank you gentlemen, you are everything we have come to zot(a)ampersand.com | expect from years of government training. -- MIB Zed --- end forwarded text ----------------- Robert Hettinga (rah(a)shipwright.com) Philodox e$, 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' The e$ Home Page: http://www.shipwright.com/ Ask me about FC98 in Anguilla!: <http://www.fc98.ai/>

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[rc5] The unknown message is...
by David McNett 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 It is a great privilege and we are excited to announce that at 13:25 GMT on 19-Oct-1997, we found the correct solution for RSA Labs RC5- 32/12/7 56-bit secret-key challenge. Confirmed by RSA Labs, the key 0x532B744CC20999 presented us with the plaintext message for which we have been searching these past 250 days. The unknown message is: Its time to move to a longer key length In undeniably the largest distributed-computing effort ever, the Bovine RC5 Cooperative (http://www.distributed.net/) under the leadership of distributed.net, managed to evaluate 47% of the keyspace, or 34 quadrillion keys, before finding the winning key. At the close of this contest our 4000 active teams were processing over 7 billion keys each second at an aggregate computing power equivalent to more than 26 thousand Pentium 200s or over 11 thousand PowerPC 604e/200s. Over the course of the project, we received block submissions from over 500 thousand unique IP addresses. The winning key was found by Peter Stuer <peter(a)dinf.vub.ac.be> with an Intel Pentium Pro 200 running Windows NT Workstation, working for the STARLab Bovine Team coordinated by Jo Hermans <Jo.Hermans(a)vub.ac.be> and centered in the Computer Science Department (DINF) of the Vrije Universiteit (VUB) in Brussels, Belgium. (http://dinf.vub.ac.be/bovine.html/) Jos only comments were that "$1000 will buy a lot of beer" and that he wished that the solution had been found by a Macintosh, the platform that represented the largest portion of his teams cracking power. Congratulations Peter and Jo! Of the US$10000 prize from RSA Labs, they will receive US$1000 and plan to host an unforgettable party in celebration of our collective victory. If youre anywhere near Brussels, you might want to find out when the party will be held. US$8000, of course, is being donated to Project Gutenberg (http://www.promo.net/pg/) to assist them in their continuing efforts in converting literature into electronic format for the public use. The remaining US$1000 is being retained by distributed.net to assist in funding future projects. Equally important are the thanks, accolades, and congratulations due to all who participated and contributed to the Bovine RC5-56 Effort! The thousands of teams and tens of thousands of individuals who have diligently tested key after key are the reason we are so successful. The thrill of finding the key more than compensates for the sleep, food, and free time that weve sacrificed! Special thanks go to all the coders and developers, especially Tim Charron, who has graciously given his time and expertise since the earliest days of the Bovine effort. Thanks to all the coordinators and keyserver operators: Chris Chiapusio, Paul Chvostek, Peter Denitto, Peter Doubt, Mishari Muqbil, Steve Sether, and Chris Yarnell. Thanks to Andrew Meggs, Roderick Mann, and Kevyn Shortell for showing us the true power of the Macintosh and the strength of its users. Wed also like to thank Dave Avery for attempting to bridge the gap between Bovine and the other RC5 efforts. Once again, a heartfelt clap on the back goes out to all of us who have run the client. Celebrations are in order. Id like to invite any and all to join us on the EFNet IRC network channel #rc5 for celebrations as we regroup and set our sights on the next task. Now that weve proven the limitations of a 56-bit key length, lets go one further and demonstrate the power of distributed computing! We are, all of us, the future of computing. Join the excitement as the world is forced to take notice of the power weve harnessed. Moo and a good hearty laugh. Adam L. Beberg - Client design and overall visionary Jeff Lawson - keymaster/server network design and morale booster David McNett - stats development and general busybody -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: PGP for Personal Privacy 5.0 Charset: noconv iQA/AwUBNE5sy7N5xKXkPF/DEQLBMwCfadBDxP97DhosT7ILs9vdYRha9nIAnRCl ydiRYhdAplj25nDSZNbXYILS =4dNQ -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -/\/ugget ________________________________________________________________________ |David McNett |To ensure privacy and data integrity this message has| |nugget(a)slacker.com|been encrypted using dual rounds of ROT-13 encryption| |Birmingham, AL USA|Please encrypt all important correspondence with PGP!| ---- To unsubscribe, send email to majordomo(a)llamas.net with 'unsubscribe rc5' in the body.

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World-wide GAK
by Jeffrey Gold 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

For those who thought GAK was merely a local political issue, isolated to those barbarians in the USA, one that they could afford to ignore and morally refuse to address -- Quelle surprise! It's spreading: FRANCE PROPOSES KEY ENCRYPTION LAW The French government has proposed a law that would mandate a key-recovery system for all encrypted electronic documents, a move that is opposed by the business community and the European Commission. Earlier this month, the European Commission rejected the key-recovery approach to encryption, which some believe would make it easier for competitors to gain access to a company's business secrets. "I do not say this is the best system," says the chief of France's Central Service for the Security of Information Systems. "It is the least bad in trying to find a balance between national-security interests, economic interests and the protection of personal privacy." (Wall Street Journal 20 Oct 97)

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